Fifty years ago, teachers reported the top discipline problems in schools were talking out of turn, running in the halls, chewing gum, and cutting in line. Today's teachers, however, find themselves facing a far more severe problem. Violence in schools is rising at an alarming rate, both in frequency and in severity. Most will agree this disturbing trend demands immediate attention from educators. I submit however, that each of us, as a member of the community, is also an educator in a very real sense. It is the responsibility of each individual to do his or her part as a parent, community leader, neighbor, or peer to provide caring examples of concern and social responsibility which not only promote a safe environment but also enhance student learning and personal development.

School violence has traditionally been defined as acts of assault, verbal abuse, physical harm, vandalism, or theft—all acts that create an environment where students and teachers feel fear and intimidation. The emotional harm and stifled learning environment produced by violence are as serious as the violence itself. The statistics speak for themselves.

• Over 100,000 students bring weapons to school each day, and 40 are killed or wounded each year.
• Large numbers of students fear victimization on the way to and from school.
• Twenty-two percent of students are afraid to use a school bathroom, as they are often sites of assaults and other forms of victimization.
• More than 6,000 teachers are threatened annually, and well over 200 are injured on school grounds.

A key point is that no school—whether rural, suburban, or urban—is immune from violence. The recent deaths in Jonesboro, Arkansas; Pearl, Mississippi; West Paducah, Kentucky, and Littleton, Colorado, have served as a "wake-up" call to the seriousness of violence among America's youth. School violence can no longer be assigned to particular "troubled" areas; it has become a national problem demanding an unequivocal response.

The question then arises, "What is causing the apparent sudden rise in school violence and what should be done in response?" Clearly, before steps can be taken to approach the answer effectively, the issue must be thoroughly examined.

Ill. Harry S. Barrows, 33°, S.G.I.G. in Iowa, leads the applause after presenting a check to Lee E. Edgar for having his essay selected as one of the two grand prize winners in the 1999 Paul R. Kach, 33°, DeMolay Essay Competition.

Obviously, as violence became more prevalent in our society, it was only a matter of time until it permeated our schools. Numerous studies over the last decade have presented many possible causes. The strongest possibilities include poor living conditions fostering an idea that "violence is the only way out"; society's increased fascination with violence in the media and entertainment venues such as video games; and the decay of family, church, and community values.

Clearly, it is our civic and moral responsibility, as well as in our own best interest, to look out for the well-being of each other. Yet there remain families in extreme poverty and children abandoned, in reality or in spirit, by parents. These create a poverty of body and spirit where hunger and need build hostility and hate. Such conditions can be eradicated by creating jobs and opportunities for those in need; by rebuilding neighborhoods and community pride; and, most of all, by building up the self-esteem of those who question their own worth.

Both the Surgeon General and the National Institute of Mental Health have cautioned concerning the influences of television. They cite that the average number of violent acts depicted on television increased from 18 to 26 per hour in the last decade. Meanwhile, children spend as much as 30 hours a week watching television or videos and playing video games. By the time a youth graduates from high school, he or she has spent, on average, 12,000 hours in school but 18,000 with television. It isn't difficult to see how many children are influenced far more by the media than by school.

Decade '90s cartoons and off-color situation comedies were not the fare of Senior DeMolays Walt Disney and Fred MacMurray or Eagle Scout Ozzie Nelson. Television is instant pleasure, just as are drugs, requiring little effort by the viewer/user. It is far easier for children to pay more attention to misleading ideas about crime, violence, and family conflict than to learn values in our schools.

To counter these negative influences, schools must reach out to students and catch their interest while teaching important lessons and values. Parents must avoid using television and videos as babysitters and, in contrast, take time to help children develop interests, hobbies, and pastimes that are more positive and active and less negative and passive than watching the tube. Doing this will limit children's exposure to television while building confidence in their own capabilities. Taking time to explain to children what is "real" and not real on television is also very important.

Perhaps the most serious cause of violence is the decay of family, church, and civic values. We are all products of our environments, and, as it has been from time immemorial, today's young people are tomorrow's leaders. In the home, children must be nurtured and instilled with morals and values; if not, they will get values, probably poor ones, other places. When America's public schools began in 1647, Massachusetts Puritans established them to teach reading, writing, and arithmetic skills and to cultivate values that would serve a democratic society. However, the major responsibility of raising the child was left to families and churches. In the past century, schools have been given the responsibility to teach everything from nutrition and drivers' ed to sex education and parenting without any additional time added to the school day.

Schools can educate America's children but parents must take the active role in raising them with proper character traits and morals. Admittedly, single-parent and two-working-parent families have difficulty in doing this, but help should be available from other family members, neighbors, and a myriad of outstanding youth groups. Were any of the troubled youth that shot their classmates DeMolay Boys, Rainbow Girls, Jobs Daughters, Scouts, or 4H members? No! DeMolay for many years did not have a single member guilty of a felony; even today the crime rate related to DeMolays is way below the general youth population. Yet all DeMolay Chapters and similar youth groups cry out for adult leaders.

The prosperity of a community is a direct result of the strength or weakness of community ties. Adults must take time to show interest in our youth, let them know they are a vital part of the community, then use the youth's vigor and spirit in attractive, positive ways. A connection has often been shown between crime and powerlessness. Violent acts are often performed by people seeking to establish self-esteem. It is important that communities realize their civic responsibility to help young people gain a sense of place and a stake in society. In turn, our schools will have a more motivated and morally centered youth to educate.

Obviously there is no single solution to preventing violence among young people in our schools and neighborhoods. However, it is also important to note that neither is there any single responsibility. There are roles for you, me, our neighbors, and persons in every sector of our communities and governments. As a DeMolay, I learned that our public schools are indeed "the foundation of our country's greatness." If the foundation crumbles, so will the structure that it bears.

Thus I am fully committed to assist youth in embracing positive values and in becoming "junior citizens of our great country." Many adults helped bring other young people and me to this point. Among them were DeMolay advisers and Scoutmasters, Sunday school teachers and neighbors, grandparents and other relatives, professional men and businesswomen, and the countless others who applaud good behavior and correct wrong actions.

Will you join them? Will you join them now? Or will you prefer to do nothing and simply read another headline or hear another newscast decrying yet another assault or murder in your schools? We all make choices; inaction is a choice!

Lee E. Edgar is a third-generation DeMolay, and his grandfather, Raymond A. Edgar, 32°, is a member of the Clinton, Iowa, Scottish Rite Bodies. Lee is a Past Master Councilor of North Iowa Chapter in Mason City, DeMolay of the Year in Iowa, has served as State Chaplain, and is a recipient of the Degree of Chevalier. This spring he represented Iowa at the Great Lakes and Old South ritual tourneys. Lee is now in the College of Engineering at Iowa State University in preparation for becoming a County Engineer and is a member of the qualifying national steel bridge building team. Highlights of his life include visiting Jacques DeMolay's execution site in Paris while on an honors trip, riding across Iowa on the annual RAGBRAI bicycle trek, and taking his rebuilt '70 Nova on Hot Rod magazine's annual "Power Tour." Lee has also twice represented his church at ELCA synod conventions as a youth delegate and is a member of Phi Theta Kappa national honorary scholastic fraternity. And, yes, his sister and girlfriend are Rainbows!